The duo has released nine studio albums so far: Under Feet Like Ours (1999), This Business of Art (2000), If It Was You (2002), So Jealous (2004), The Con (2007), Sainthood (2009), Heartthrob (2013), Love You to Death (2016) and Hey, I'm Just Like You (2019). They also issued the live album/DVD Get Along in 2011 and their memoir High School in 2019.
Tegan and Sara initially played as Plunk in 1995, and lacked a drummer and bass player. In 1997, they used their school’s recording studio to record two demo albums: Who's in Your Band? and Play Day.
In 1998, they made an early breakthrough by winning Garage Warz Battle of the Bands, a local music competition in Calgary. Since then, the two have toured with Neil Young, Rufus Wainwright, Kaki King, The Pretenders, Ben Folds, The Killers, Rachael Cantu, Vivek Shraya, Cake, Gogol Bordello, Hot Hot Heat, Ryan Adams, Veda Hille, Little Birdy, Iron On, Little Brazil, Bryan Adams, and Weezer, and they performed a show at Sarah McLachlan's Lilith Fair.
They are signed to Neil Young's Vapor Records in Canada, and to Sire in the United States as their previous label, Sanctuary Records, is no longer releasing new music in the United States.
When they were competing in Garage Warz, they were known as "Sara and Tegan" because that is how their mother registered them on the competition forms. Their first album, Under Feet Like Ours, was initially released under the name "Sara and Tegan". While both twins are similarly involved in vocals and playing instruments, the singing of the lead melody usually goes to whichever twin wrote the particular song. The two hardly sang together in the recordings of their early records, but they started to more on their later records and when live.
On their 2004 album, So Jealous, the two lend their unusual voices and simple guitar riffs to power pop ballads about love and emotional, haunting songs such as "Walking With a Ghost".
The fifth album, The Con, released July 24, 2007, showed a shift in style towards darker tunes compared to the relatively upbeat indie pop of So Jealous. The singles "Back in Your Head", "The Con" and "Call It Off" were issued to support the album. The twins toured the album for over a year and a half.
Their sixth studio album, entitled Sainthood, was released on October 27th, 2009, to generally positive reviews. The album included the singles "Hell", "Alligator", "On Directing" and "Northshore".
Tegan and Sara also collaborated with many other artists, including Tiësto for the single "Feel It in My Bones" (from the album Kaleidoscope, 2009), and Morgan Page for the single "Body Work" (from the album In the Air, 2012).
"Closer", the first single from their seventh album was produced by Californian pop producer Greg Kurstin. The song was made available for download September 25, 2012. On 29 January 2013, Tegan and Sara released their seventh studio album, Heartthrob.
The duo's eighth studio album, titled Love You To Death, was released on 3 June 2016. The lead single Boyfriend was released on 8 April. Greg Kurstin returned as the producer.
On October 20, 2017, the duo released a compilation album titled Tegan and Sara Present the Con X: Covers, to celebrate the tenth anniversary of The Con. The compilation contains covers of each song performed by various artists, as well as a previously unreleased demo “Miami Still”, performed by the duo. The proceeds of the record and subsequent tour benefitted the Tegan and Sara Foundation, which raises money for self-identified women and girls in the LGBTQ community.
The duo released their memoir, High School, on 27 September 2019. It recounts their childhood and adolescence growing up in Alberta in the 1990s as well as their musical beginnings. The book debuted at number fifteen on The New York Times Hardcover Nonfiction best-sellers list. Along with the book, Tegan and Sara's released their ninth studio album, Hey, I'm Just Like You, which contains re-recordings of unreleased demo songs that the duo recorded as teenagers. The record was produced by Alex Hope and is the first Tegan and Sara record produced, performed, engineered, mixed, and mastered by a team of all women. The band embarked on a US, Canada and UK tour to promote the book and album, playing mostly acoustically, reading excerpts from the book and incorporating old video footage from the band's teenage years.
The current live touring band members include Ted Gowans (guitar; 2004-present), Jasper Leak (bass; 2012-present), John Spence (keyboards; 2012-present), and Adam Christgau (drums; 2013-present). Former live touring band members include Johnny Andrews (drums; 2006-2010), Shaun Huberts (bass; 2007-2010), Dan Kelly (bass; 2007), Chris Carlson (bass; 2001-2005), Rob Chursinoff (drums; 2001-2005) and Jason McGerr (drums; 2012).
Official site: http://www.teganandsara.com
I Bet It Stung
Tegan and Sara Lyrics
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Everything that you want to say
I wish that we didn't
Have to go about things this way
I love the rock and roll
I love the rock and roll
Don't get so uptight
Go, go away
Tell me you love me like
You think you want to be loved
Pull on my hand and say
Please just let's make it this way
I love the rock and roll
I love the rock and roll
Don't get so uptight
Don't get so uptight
Go, go away
Go, go away
In Tegan and Sara's song "I Bet It Stung," the lyrics convey a sense of frustration and disappointment with a relationship that has become too scripted and preplanned. The singer knows that their partner plans out everything they want to say, and wishes that things could be more spontaneous and free-flowing. The singer declares their love for rock and roll, perhaps as a way to contrast with the rigid conformity of the relationship, and urges their partner not to get so uptight. The repeated refrain of "go, go away" suggests a desire for distance and separation, perhaps as a way of breaking free from the predictability of the relationship.
The second verse reinforces this desire for spontaneity and authenticity in the relationship. The singer wants their partner to tell them they love them in a way that feels genuine, rather than simply going through the motions. They pull on the singer's hand and ask to make things this way, further highlighting the theme of preplanning and conformity.
Overall, the lyrics of "I Bet It Stung" are a powerful statement against the limitations of scripted relationships and demand for greater authenticity and openness.
Line by Line Meaning
I know you plan out
I am aware that you put a lot of thought into everything you say
Everything that you want to say
You always have a specific message that you want to convey
I wish that we didn't
It would be so much better if we didn't have to deal with this situation
Have to go about things this way
I wish we could handle things differently
I love the rock and roll
I am very passionate about rock and roll music
I love the rock and roll
Rock and roll music is something that I am truly passionate about
Don't get so uptight
Please don't get too worried or anxious about things
Don't get so uptight
Please don't worry too much about things
Go, go away
Please leave me alone and go away
Tell me you love me like
Explain to me how you love me and what that means to you
You think you want to be loved
Explain to me how you want to be loved
Pull on my hand and say
Take my hand and let's have an honest conversation
Please just let's make it this way
Please let's just try to make things work like this
Go, go away
Please leave me alone and go away
Go, go away
Please go away and leave me alone
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Sara Keirsten Quin, Tegan Rain Quin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind